ACFW New Releases: February 2016

Joshua’s Mission by Vannetta Chapman — Joshua Kline travels from his farm in Oklahoma to offer aid to an Englisch town on the gulf coast of Texas after a category 4 hurricane has ravaged the area. He brings his brother with him, hoping to keep Alton from another brush with the law. Joshua is pleasantly surprised when he hears that Becca Troyer, the bishop’s granddaughter, plans on joining their team. What will Joshua find when he arrives in Texas? A lack of electricity, certainly, which poses little problem for the Amish volunteers as they help restore order from destruction. But a budding romance? A call from God? And a possible healing of his relationship with Alton? (Amish Romance from Harvest House Publishers)

An Amish Market: Four Novellas by Amy Clipston, Kathleen Fuller, Kelly Irvin, and Vannetta Chapman — All the color and variety of a quaint Amish shop in a charming collection of novellas by four of your favorite authors. Love Birds by Amy Clipston: Ellie Lapp takes a liking to Lloyd’s beautifully carved wooden birds, not to mention the young man himself, when she convinces this friend of her deceased brother’s to sell his creations in the gift shop where she works. But will his family’s plans for him come between their budding relationship? A Bid for Love by Kathleen Fuller: Every week, confirmed bachelor Ezra buys Hannah Lynne’s home-churned butter at the local market, barely glancing her way, despite her hope to the contrary. But when Ezra bids an exorbitant amount to win the quilt she had her heart set on, Hannah Lynne can’t stop wondering if Ezra is finally in the market for love. Sweeter Than Honey by Kelly Irvin: Shattering a jar of pickled beets in Bee County’s Combination Store was embarrassing enough without Isabella’s receiving a frosty reaction from the handsome store manager, Will Glick. But she soon learns Will’s heart is in pieces. Now, Isabella finds herself longing to be the one to repair it and renew his faith in love. Love in Store by Vannetta Chapman: Stella Schrock and new employee David Stoltzfus, a recent widower, have to work together to solve the mystery of strange events happening at the Old Amish Mill, and in the process they may find God has more in store than they imagined. (Amish Romance from HarperCollins Christian Publishing [Thomas Nelson and Zondervan])

Biblical:

The Prophetess: Deborah’s Story by Jill Eileen Smith — Outspoken and fearless, Deborah has faith in God but struggles to see the potential her own life holds. As an Israelite woman, she’ll marry, have a family, and seek to teach her children about Adonai–and those tasks seem to be more than enough to occupy her time. But God has another plan for her. Israel has been under the near constant terror of Canaan’s armies for twenty years, and now God has called Deborah to deliver her people from this oppression. Will her family understand? Will her people even believe God’s calling on her life? And can the menace of Canaan be stopped?
(Biblical from Revell – A Division of Baker Publishing Group)

Children’s:

Samantha Sanderson Without a Trace by Robin Caroll — Sam Sanderson dreams of becoming an award-winning journalist like her mother, so she’s always looking for articles to publish in her middle-school paper, where she secretly hopes to become chief editor. With a police officer for a father, Sam is never short on writing material. When Sam’s friend Tam Lee goes missing, all clues seem to point to something sinister in Sam’s opinion. Sam must decide whether to trust law enforcement’s opinion that Tam’s a run-away or follow her heart and poke around for more clues? (Children’s from HarperCollins Christian Publishing [Thomas Nelson and Zondervan])

Hope Girl by Wendy Dunham — With the discovery of her birth father, 12-year-old River has to decide if she should continue living with Gram, who has been her family for the past ten years, or with her father, who she’s over-the-moon to have just met but knows little about. And when River is diagnosed with a condition that could impact her future, she feels overwhelmed and bewildered. That’s when River asks God for help and decides to trust him with her dreams. (Children’s from Harvest House Publishers)

Contemporary Romance:

Island Hope by Kimberly Rose Johnson — Metal sculptor Hope Michaels gave up on art when her creativity was zapped by another and buries herself in an electrical contracting job on Wildflower Island. She never imagines her best friend and employer, Piper, would turn matchmaker. When a lonely widower is promoted to manager of the Wildflower Resort, his new responsibilities complicate his relationship with his teenage daughter. Seeking advice from a feisty-but-sweet newcomer, he never expects things to only get more complicated. (Contemporary Romance from Mountain Brook Ink)

General:

Renovating the Richardsons by Virginia Smith — In the small town of Goose Creek, Kentucky, Millie Richardson is renovating a drafty Victorian house into a B&B while her husband, Al, busily writes checks for the renovations. Also, the new vet, Susan, has finally found acceptance from the town–not to mention a hunky new boyfriend, Justin. But things never stay quiet for long in Goose Creek. The inner-county softball game is coming up, and Millie volunteers Al as team manager. But the softball team is a disaster. If they’re not going to embarrass themselves in front of the whole of Franklin County, Al needs Justin to play. But Justin lives just outside the city limits, and the rules say that players must live in town. As if that weren’t enough to keep the town gossips busy, a massage therapist opens up shop in town. Imagine–a massage parlor!–in Goose Creek! No decent Creeker will stand for it. It’s up to Al and Millie–again–to save the day. (General from Harvest House Publishers)

A Sweet Misfortune by Maggie Brendan — Rachel Matthews isn’t one to rely on others to take care of her. Destitute and alone, she still wants to make her own way and her own money–even if she’s forced into the life of a dance hall girl. Horrified by her circumstances, Rachel’s brother sends a friend–the widely admired cattle baron John McIntyre–to rescue her, then sets off to earn enough money to buy back the family ranch. But when months pass without her brother’s return, Rachel isn’t sure she can take one more day in John McIntyre’s home–especially once she discovers that he’s the one who holds the deed to her family’s ranch. (Historical Romance from Revell – A Division of Baker Publishing Group)

A Spy’s Devotion by Melanie Dickerson — After suffering a battlefield injury, wealthy, well-connected British officer Nicholas Langdon returns home to heal—and to fulfill a dying soldier’s last wish by delivering his coded diary. At a ball hosted by the powerful Whilhelm family, Langdon meets their beautiful and intelligent ward, Julia Grey. Honoring propriety, he keeps his distance—until the diary is stolen and all clues lead to Julia’s guardian. As Langdon traces an evil plot that could be the nation’s undoing, he grows ever more intrigued by the lovely young woman. And when Julia realizes that England-and the man she is falling in love with—need her help, she finds herself caught in the fray. (Historical Romance from Waterfall Press, an imprint of Amazon Publishing)

The Express Rider’s Lady by Stacy Henrie — Delsie Radford’s father may have kept her and her sister apart, but Delsie refuses to miss her sister’s wedding-even with only eighteen days to get there. And she’s found the perfect escort in Pony Express rider Myles Patton. Myles can’t believe it when a pretty socialite hires him to take her cross-country through dangerous territory. He’s sure she’ll give up soon, but the longer they ride together, the more Myles notices the toughness and kindness beneath Delsie’s refined exterior. And though they may be worlds apart…they might just be perfect for each other. (Historical Romance from Love Inspired [Harlequin])

The Texan’s Engagement Agreement by Noelle Marchand — It’s been five years since Adelaide Harper broke Chris Johansen’s heart-and their long-distance engagement. But when she steps off a train in Peppin, Texas, and strolls back into Chris’s life, he can’t help but panic. To avoid his parents’ plan to arrange a marriage for him, he’s let his family believe he and Adelaide are still engaged. Adelaide is facing her own troubles with a matchmaking mama and a parade of aggravating suitors. So pretending to let Chris court her could help them both. Surely after five years, there’s no need to worry their time together could reignite a long-buried love…is there? (Historical Romance from Love Inspired [Harlequin])

Northern Light by Annette O’Hare — The Yankees took her fiancés life, but when a wounded Union soldier washes ashore, needing her help, will she learn to love again or will hate cost him his life? (Historical Romance from White Rose Publishing (Pelican)

Romantic Suspense:

Rocky Mountain Pursuit by Mary Alford — Everyone believes agent Jase Bradford is dead-everyone but Reyna Peterson. Only he can protect her now that someone wants the information her CIA husband died to secure. As the one member of their spy team not killed, Jase must remain in the shadows. Yet when Reyna leads the enemy right to his mountain refuge and blows his cover, Jase risks his life for hers. As his best friend’s beautiful widow scales the walls around his heart, whether out of loyalty or love, he makes it his duty to secure her safety. But when their pursuers trap them in the snowy Colorado mountains, will it become his final mission? (Romantic Suspense from Love Inspired (Harlequin))

Always Watching by Lynette Eason — The bodyguards of Elite Guardians Agency have more than just skill and prowess in common–they’re also all women. When it becomes clear that popular psychiatrist and radio personality Wade Savage has a stalker, his father secretly hires Elite Guardians in order to protect his son. But when Wade’s bodyguard is attacked and nearly killed, agency owner Olivia Edwards must step in and fill the gap. Olivia’s skills are about to be tested to the limit as Wade’s stalker moves from leaving innocent gifts at his door to threatening those closest to him. Olivia has the feeling that she’s next on the list. And to complicate things even further, she realizes that her heart may be in as much danger as her client. (Romantic Suspense from Revell – A Division of Baker Publishing Group)

Navy SEAL Security by Liz Johnson — Wounded navy SEAL Luke Dunham’s only goal is returning to active duty…until he rescues his physical therapist from a lethal attack. Now he’ll risk everything-even his recovery-—to keep Mandy Berg’s attacker at bay. Mandy’s been burned before when she trusted the wrong man. And she knows better than to develop feelings for one of her patients. Yet how can she help falling for a man who does not hesitate to put his strength, his skill and his very life in harm’s way to keep her safe? Relying on anyone feels dangerous…but turning away Luke’s protection could be deadly. (Romantic Suspense from Love Inspired [Harlequin])

Pandora’s Deed by Monica Mynk — Savannah Barrett fled her Dreyfus home to escape childhood bullies, and planned to stay away for good. Body image struggles have led her to give up so much of herself to empty relationships, she believes no one could desire her for more. Geoff Spencer, her former tormentor, is the man who could love her anyway. He cleaned up his life, stopped bullying, and found Christ. When she inherits his farm, she returns to claim the property and face her dreadful past, never expecting to claim his heart. But the property transfer unearths a mystery that some would prefer to stay buried and plants Savannah in the path of a psychopath who’d rather dispose of her rather than expose the past. (Romantic Suspense from Mantle Rock Publishing)

Cold Shot by Dani Pettrey — In college, Griffin McCray and his four best friends had their lives planned out. But one of them vanished before graduation and their world–and friendships–crumbled. Now Griffin is a park ranger at Gettysburg, having left life as a SWAT-team sniper when a case went bad. The job is mostly quiet–until the day he captures two relic hunters uncovering skeletal remains near Little Round Top. Griffin just wants the case to go away, but charming forensic anthropologist Finley Scott determines that the body is modern–a young social justice lawyer missing since spring–and all evidence points to the work of an expert sniper. When of Griffin’s former friends, FBI agent Declan Gray, takes over the case, past and present collide. Griffin soon realizes he’ll need to confront some of the darkest days of his life if he–and those he cares about–are going to escape a downward spiral of murder that crosses continents. (Romantic Suspense from Bethany House [Baker] Publishing)

Speculative:

The Last Apostle by Dennis Brooke — What if John, the last living apostle of Jesus Christ, was still alive and well… and living in Seattle? In A.D. 100, John is restored to the body of his youth and sent on a mission with a warning: to never reveal his true identity. Fast-forward to modern day Seattle, where both friends and foes are on the verge of discovering who he truly is-an event that will trigger the end times. (Speculative from Made for Grace)

Far and Near by Amanda G. Stevens — Marcus, Lee, Austin, and Violet are starting over. Texas is supposed to be their sanctuary. But the Constabulary isn’t ready to relinquish their worst offenders, legal jurisdiction or not. They’ve sent agents in undercover, and Marcus is the assigned target of one who has personal reasons to bring him back dead or alive. Marcus and Lee are ready to be whole again, to secure a home here–together. But wholeness and home might not mean what they thought. Stopping the Constabulary hunters will require more than Marcus knows how to give, and God is about to use him again in a way he doesn’t expect. (Speculative from David C. Cook)

Thriller/Suspense:

Voice in the Wilderness by H. L. Wegley — As catastrophes drive the US into martial law, all eyes are on America, waiting to see what emerges. KC Banning, network specialist, discovers President Hannan’s tyrannical plans and is branded a terrorist, sending her fleeing the Beltway to find her childhood soulmate and protector, Brock Daniels. Brock, a writer and man of faith, gives CPR to a dying nation through his blog, which is read by military members still loyal to the Constitution. But starting a grassroots insurgency while reconciling KC’s and Brock’s broken relationship proves difficult. When Hannan sends Special Forces to kill Brock and KC, starting a war in the Central Oregon desert, reconciliation, like staying alive, might be impossible. (Thriller/Suspense, Independently Published using Trinity Press International)